COURT INVALIDATES ATIKU’S ADC PRESIDENTIAL TICKET, RESTRAINS MARK-LED LEADERSHIP

The leadership crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has intensified following a Federal High Court in Abuja’s decision to invalidate a resignation letter allegedly written by the party’s former Deputy National Chairman, Nafiu Bala Gombe.

The ruling has further complicated the party’s leadership dispute, coming days after the court nullified the emergence of the National Working Committee (NWC) led by former Senate President, Senator David Mark.

In a significant part of the judgment, Justice Peter Lifu declared all decisions taken by the Mark-led NWC invalid, including the nomination of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general elections.

The development has thrown Atiku’s political future under the ADC into uncertainty.

In the Certified True Copy of the judgment obtained by our correspondent on Wednesday, the court ruled that all actions and decisions taken by Mark, former Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola and other members of the disputed NWC from July 29, 2025, were null and void.

However, the court stopped short of declaring Gombe the substantive National Chairman of the party. Instead, it directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise him as the only elected member of the ADC’s National Working Committee whose four-year tenure remained valid.

Justice Lifu, in the judgment delivered on November 5, explained that nullifying the process that produced Mark and Aregbesola as National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively, did not automatically make Gombe the party’s leader.

The judge maintained that the invalidity of the leadership arrangement and Gombe’s claim to a particular office were separate legal matters.

He said Gombe’s argument that he was the only elected NWC member who had not resigned could potentially qualify him to supervise the party’s affairs but did not automatically establish his entitlement to a specific national position.

According to the court, any declaration granting Gombe the authority to act as a national officer must be supported by the party’s constitution, relevant evidence and applicable laws.

The court nevertheless held that INEC was obligated to recognise Gombe as the only elected member of the NWC whose four-year tenure remained in effect.

Gombe had told the court that he was elected Deputy National Chairman on October 12, 2022, for a four-year term scheduled to end on October 11, 2026.

He argued that he was the only elected member of the NWC who did not resign after former National Chairman Ralph Nwosu and other members of the party’s leadership stepped down on July 24, 2025.

However, the judgment came about three weeks after the expiration of his tenure.

Justice Lifu consequently restrained INEC from recognising or dealing with Mark, Aregbesola and members of their NWC as officers of the party. He also barred the two former officials from presenting themselves as national officers of the ADC and dismissed the defendants’ counterclaim.

The judgment followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, filed by Gombe against the ADC, INEC, Mark, Aregbesola and Nwosu.

The plaintiff had challenged the emergence of the Mark-led leadership at the party’s 99th National Executive Committee meeting in July 2025, arguing that vacancies created by the resignation of the former leadership could only be filled through democratic elections.

The defendants, however, maintained that the dispute concerned the internal affairs of the party and was not subject to judicial intervention.

Rejecting their argument, Lifu held that political parties were not exempt from complying with constitutional and statutory provisions.

He ruled that the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola had not been shown to meet the requirement for democratic elections under Section 82(3) of the Electoral Act 2022.

The court consequently invalidated decisions taken by the Mark-led leadership, including the process that produced Atiku as the ADC’s presidential candidate for the 2027 elections.

The ADC has rejected the court’s finding that Gombe’s purported resignation letter was fabricated, insisting that the former deputy national chairman voluntarily resigned from his position.

Speaking with our correspondent, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the ADC had the original copy of the resignation letter, bearing Gombe’s signature.

He accused the judge of disregarding evidence the party intended to present and disclosed that the party would challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal.

Abdullahi maintained that the letter was genuine and had been submitted to INEC, arguing that Gombe should have reported the alleged forgery to the police if he believed his signature had been falsified.

He said the appellate court would determine whether the resignation letter was forged.

However, Justice Lifu had explained that the certification of a document did not automatically establish the authenticity of a disputed signature.

The judge said he compared the signature on the disputed letter, tendered as Exhibit ADC-1, with those on Gombe’s sworn statements and identified significant differences.

He consequently ruled that the document was not reliable evidence that Gombe had voluntarily resigned as Deputy National Chairman.

Gombe had consistently denied authoring the letter, publicly describing it as forged in April 2026.

The court’s rejection of the document weakened a major argument advanced by the Mark-led faction to establish that Gombe had relinquished his position before the party’s leadership transition.

Meanwhile, the ADC Presidential Campaign Council alleged that Gombe had previously acknowledged Mark as the party’s National Chairman during a National Executive Committee meeting.

The council’s Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, reportedly forwarded a video in which Gombe was heard referring to Mark as the party’s National Chairman.

Meanwhile, INEC has said it will not take any action on the judgment nullifying the ADC leadership until it obtains and reviews the Certified True Copy.

The National Commissioner and Chairman of the Commission’s Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, disclosed this on Wednesday during a webinar organised by the PUNCH Media Foundation.

Haruna explained that the commission needed to study the judgment and obtain legal advice before determining its next course of action.

He said INEC’s legal department would examine the ruling and advise a committee chaired by a national commissioner, which would subsequently make recommendations to the commission.

According to him, INEC had already taken steps to obtain the document but could not compel the court to release it immediately.

He noted that obtaining a certified copy of a judgment usually takes about a week, adding that the ruling was delivered towards the end of the previous week.

Haruna stressed that the commission would begin its internal review once the document became available, maintaining that it could not take a position without first examining the court’s decision.

The ruling has further heightened uncertainty surrounding the ADC’s leadership structure and preparations for the 2027 elections, with the rival factions maintaining opposing positions.

The leadership crisis has also triggered protests and petitions from ADC candidates, who have approached international organisations and diplomatic missions over the court judgment invalidating the Mark-led NWC and the party’s nomination of candidates for the 2027 elections.

The candidates, operating under the Forum of ADC Candidates in Nigeria, petitioned the United Nations, United States Embassy, British High Commission, European Union and Economic Community of West African States.

They alleged that the delay in releasing the Certified True Copy of the judgment was preventing them from exercising their constitutional right to appeal.

In a petition signed on behalf of the forum by Audu Aliyu, the candidates urged the international organisations and diplomatic missions to encourage the Nigerian government and relevant institutions to respect due process.

They also called for the judgment not to be implemented before the party had exhausted its right of appeal.

The candidates maintained that their disagreement with the ruling did not amount to a rejection of the judiciary, pledging to abide by the final decision of the highest court with jurisdiction after exhausting all available appeal processes.

The forum disclosed that its lawyers applied for the certified copy immediately after the November 5 judgment and paid the required fees, but the document had yet to be released five days later.

It alleged that repeated visits to the court registry yielded no explanation for the delay, prompting the candidates to petition the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho.

The candidates also expressed concern over alleged political pressure on INEC to implement the judgment before the determination of any appeal.

They, however, maintained that they were not accusing any individual or institution of wrongdoing, insisting that they should not face the consequences of a judgment while being denied access to the document needed to challenge it.

The dispute also prompted ADC members and supporters to stage a protest at the Federal High Court premises in Abuja on Wednesday, demanding the immediate release of the Certified True Copy of the judgment.

The protesters, led by former Acting Chairman of the ADC in the Federal Capital Territory, Yusuf Shehu Tijani, called on the National Judicial Council to intervene.

They accused Justice Lifu of withholding the judgment and frustrating the party’s efforts to appeal the ruling.

Tijani described the judgment as a sham and questioned why the court had yet to release its certified copy.

He also claimed that the Supreme Court had already affirmed Mark’s leadership as the National Chairman of the ADC, questioning the basis of the Federal High Court’s decision.

The former acting chairman said the protest was aimed at drawing the attention of the NJC to the alleged delay and urging the judge to release the document.

He insisted that the party had a constitutional right to appeal the judgment but could not exercise that right without obtaining the certified copy.

Copies of the candidates’ petition were also sent to the President of the Court of Appeal, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the NJC, INEC Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association, Abuja branch, and the Inspector-General of Police.

Separately, the ADC Presidential Campaign Council has accused President Bola Tinubu of repackaging unfulfilled campaign promises in the All Progressives Congress manifesto for the 2027 general elections.

The council described the document as an attempt to mislead Nigerians for a second time, arguing that it contained no credible roadmap to economic prosperity.

The APC unveiled its manifesto, titled 2027–2031: From Reforms to Prosperity Agenda, in Jigawa State on Wednesday.

In a statement signed by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, the ADC-PCC said several promises contained in the document were repetitions of commitments made by Tinubu during the 2023 presidential campaign.

It listed stable electricity, affordable food, a stronger naira, employment opportunities for young people and improved national security among the promises it claimed the administration had failed to fulfil.

The council argued that Nigerians had instead experienced worsening economic hardship, rising food prices, currency depreciation and persistent insecurity since Tinubu assumed office in May 2023.

It also questioned the administration’s management of public finances, particularly its borrowing levels following the removal of the petrol subsidy and introduction of additional taxes.

The opposition campaign council demanded an explanation of how revenue generated through the government’s economic policies and accumulated loans had translated into infrastructure, development projects and improved living conditions.

It maintained that the administration’s economic reforms had placed an excessive burden on ordinary Nigerians without adequate social protection or corresponding relief.

The council further referenced comments attributed to the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, allegedly acknowledging that the economic reforms were not working as expected and had caused hardship for Nigerians.

It argued that the reported remarks reinforced its position that the government’s policies had failed to deliver the relief promised to citizens.

The ADC-PCC also recalled Tinubu’s 2023 campaign commitments on food security, employment, electricity, infrastructure, refinery operations and the proposed Akwa Ibom Deep Seaport, insisting that a significant gap remained between those promises and present realities.

The council urged Nigerians to reject the APC manifesto and support the ADC, which it described as an alternative committed to economic stability, national security, accountability and human dignity.

In another statement signed by its Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the ADC Presidential Campaign Council also criticised the alleged distribution of food, cash and gifts at APC political gatherings.

The council described the practice as an insult to Nigerians struggling with economic hardship and called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and INEC to investigate the reported incidents.

It alleged that APC supporters had increasingly resorted to distributing money and gifts at political events to create an impression of widespread support for the Tinubu administration ahead of the 2027 elections.

The council cited reports of luxury vehicles allegedly presented to APC women leaders, cash and cooked food reportedly distributed by the President’s son through the City Boy Movement, as well as videos purportedly showing an APC women leader sharing money and fabrics at a political gathering.